Early Briefing: Another Loss for Snyder

The Redskins lose, Joe Gibbs resigns, Six Flags shares are at an all-time low and the Golden Globes are canceled, but the turmoil in Dan Snyder's empire is deceiving. (By Jonathan Newton -- The Washington Post)

*In case you didn't hear, Joe Gibbs left as the coach of the Redskins (owned by Dan Snyder). On top of that, this year there's no Golden Globe program (owned by Dan Snyder's firm). And shares of Six Flags (of which Dan Snyder is chairman) were near their all-time low at the beginning of the year. Could it be a bad time for one of the wealthiest people in the Washington region (Dan Snyder)? His associates don't think so. See story

*The court battle between Sunrise Senior Living of McLean and former CFO Bradley B. Rush has heated up. Sunrise said in court filings that it found "more than 25,000 unique pornographic images" on a company-owned computer used by Rush. Rush, who is suing for breach of contract and defamation, has said Sunrise is trying to intimidate him into dropping the lawsuit. See story.

*The city of Baltimore sued Wells Fargo, accusing it of "reverse redlining," or targeting minority neighborhoods and putting borrowers into loans they can't afford. See story.

*Sprint Nextel of Reston showed off its WiMax technology at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas and announced it would partner with SwapDrive of the District to offer online data storage and sharing, McAfee to provide electronic security, and three other companies to create mobile devices capable of connecting to the network. See story.

*Stephen M. Cordi, Maryland's former deputy controller, was named to lead the recovery of the D.C. Office of Tax and Revenue. See story

*Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett introduced a 10-point plan to make it easier for small and minority-owned businesses to compete for $686 million in local government contracts.
The package of reforms, which requires County Council approval, would eliminate fees to submit and track bids, expand the pool of companies eligible to compete and provide more information about contracts and government contacts online. See press release.

*Frontline Wireless, which is seeking to build a nationwide public-private network, said it had "closed for business," casting doubt on whether it will bid in a government airwaves auction set to start this month. Frontline is based in Greensboro, N.C., and has an office in the District.

*Lockheed Martin of Bethesda said it was discussing potential sales of the most advanced Patriot interceptor missile to Saudi Arabia and Qatar. Those countries could become the third and fourth Middle East nations to receive the Patriot Advanced Capability-3, after the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait. See MarketWatch report.

*Circuit City chief executive Philip J. Schoonover said he will take a "cautious" stance on expenses in the first half of the year as consumers cut back on spending. The retailer is based in Richmond. This column says he is on the hot seat for 2008.